The Democratic political establishment isn’t all that eager to talk about it publicly, but make no mistake: Many prominent figures in the party would just as soon avoid a hard-fought, contested primary in the 2016 presidential race.

What they seem to prefer instead is a no-muss, no-fuss nomination season with the party coalescing behind former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The strategy has certain advantages. Democrats could build a formidable war chest and sit back while Republican candidates wrestle for the GOP nomination.

This isn’t how the Democrats typically do business. In 1980, the late Sen. Ted Kennedy challenged a sitting president, Jimmy Carter, for the Democratic nomination. Sen. Bill Bradley took a shot against incumbent Vice President Al Gore in 2000. And, yes, in 2008 a first-term senator named Barack Obama successfully challenged the candidate who seemed the prohibitive front-runner: Mrs. Clinton.

But the party doesn’t seem to have the appetite for the same sort of drama in ’16. In interviews, major Democratic fundraisers say the message they’re getting from Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley and other possible presidential hopefuls is, in essence: Keep me in mind in case she doesn’t run.

Meantime, various wings of the party are joining forces to crowd out a potential challenge to Mrs. Clinton.

“Ready for Hillary,” a super PAC that has been trying to build grassroots backing for Mrs. Clinton, has been forging links between the old Clinton and Obama coalitions. The group has been raising money, setting an individual contribution cap of $25,000. More than 80% of the 54 people who have given the maximum contribution gave to Mr. Obama in his two presidential bids, with some also contributing heavily to the pro-Obama super PAC, Priorities USA Action, in 2012, campaign finance records show. What this suggests is that should Mrs. Clinton run, she and her allied super PACs will be well positioned to sweep up big donations from both Clinton loyalists and the Obama fundraising network that defeated her six years ago.

In New Hampshire, Iowa and South Carolina –states that typically hold early contests for the presidential nomination — figures who backed Mr. Obama in ’08 are lining up behind Mrs. Clinton this time around.

Jonathan Metcalf, who worked for the Obama campaign in South Carolina in ’08, is now aligned with “Ready for Hillary.”

“We don’t have a candidate or a campaign yet, but what we do have is the ability to let Secretary Clinton know there is grassroots support for her if she decides to run,” Mr. Metcalf said in an interview.

Jerry Crawford, an Iowa lawyer who is active in the “Ready for Hillary” effort, predicted in an interview: “We can almost have an organization put together in Iowa by the end of the year that makes the Iowa caucuses predetermined if Secretary Clinton gets in the race. We can be light years ahead organizationally of anyone who would seek to challenge her would be.”

Watching these events play out, some within the party are uneasy. Competition in politics is healthy, they argue. Consider what happened in 2008. As the Democratic primary fight wore on, Mrs. Clinton became a stronger candidate. At first she was seen as stiff and programmed. But after her defeat in Iowa she showed more of her personality. She teared up in a coffee shop in New Hampshire. She downed a shot of whiskey in a bar in Indiana in April of ’08.

Brian Schweitzer, a former Democratic governor of Montana, is considering a presidential bid. He dismissed the notion that Democrats should keep the pathway clear for Mrs. Clinton.

“I think there’s a yearning for more voices – not less – in our political system,” Mr. Schweitzer said in an interview.

About Washington Wire

Washington Wire is one of the oldest standing features in American journalism. Since the Wire launched on Sept. 20, 1940, the Journal has offered readers an informal look at the capital. Now online, the Wire provides a succession of glimpses at what’s happening behind hot stories and warnings of what to watch for in the days ahead. The Wire is led by Reid J. Epstein, with contributions from the rest of the bureau. Washington Wire now also includes Think Tank, our home for outside analysis from policy and political thinkers.